Jamie's Toast
by WhiteFeather1965
Summary: A Scarecrow and Mrs. King slice of life. Lee and Amanda have gotten married again to include family and friends. The story picks up in the middle of the reception.


Disclaimer: Scarecrow and Mrs. King is owned by Shoot the Moon Enterprises Ltd. and Warner Brothers. For entertainment purposes only. No copyright infringement intended.

 **Jamie's Toast**

Summary: Lee and Amanda have gotten married again to include family and friends. The story picks up in the middle of the reception.

"...To the happy couple," Billy said and raised his glass to Lee and Amanda.

When he sat down, with a nod and a smile from Amanda, Jamie slowly stood up and unfolded a piece of paper. He looked up and held out his glass of sparkling apple cider, as he cleared his throat and began to speak.

"Lee, I want to apologize to you for giving you such a hard time at first. It just took me awhile to realize that you really love my Mom and you make her happier than she has been in what seems like forever. So here is the toast that Phillip and I wrote:

You loved us enough to endure the turmoil that your sudden presence in our lives aroused.

You loved us enough not to hurry us and give us time to come to terms with all the changes taking place in our lives.

You loved us enough not to push us into accepting you as part of our lives too quickly.

You loved us enough to see us for who we were and not who you thought we should be.

You loved us enough to be patient and give us time to be who we were and to become who we are.

You loved us enough to take the time to become an integral part of our lives, not because you felt an obligation, but because you just wanted to be there.

You loved us enough to give us the time to learn to love you as much as as you love us and our mother.

You loved us enough to be patient and let us come to you with our hugs and kisses goodnight, and finally to say 'I love you' to you.

You loved us enough to praise us with eyes shining with pride when we did something good or extraordinary.

You loved us enough to punish us when we did something wrong and talk to us when we needed it. Somehow, you always knew just the right thing to do or say.

You loved us enough to take the time to just love us, no grand gestures, just plain old honesty and in return, we love you more than you have ever been loved before."

Jamie turned toward Phillip, who stood and held out his glass. Together, they said, "To Lee. Our stepfather. Welcome to the family and welcome home."

"But," Jamie said. "If you ever hurt my Mom..."

Lee stood and gave Amanda's shoulder a gentle squeeze before he turned toward the boys. When he stood between them, he hugged them, his eyes bright with unshed tears.

Lee whispered, "I give you my solemn promise that I will not hurt your mother, ever."

Lee glanced around the room and found there wasn't a single dry eye in the place. When his eyes met Amanda's, all she could do was smile through her tears and tilt her head to one side.

"That was great guys," Lee said, glancing back down at the boys. "Anyone else want to try and top that?" When there were no takers, Lee said, "Well then, I think I'll ask my wife to dance."

Lee hugged Jamie and Phillip one more time and came to kneel next to Amanda's chair. He took her hand and asked, "May I have this dance?"

Amanda smiled and touched his face, as she whispered, "I thought you would never ask."

When they were out on the dance floor swaying gently to the music, Lee asked quietly, "Did you have anything to do with that?"

From her place leaning against Lee's chest, Amanda said, "No. I had almost nothing to do with it."

"Almost nothing..." Lee said and gently grasped her upper arms as he peeled her away from his chest. For a moment he stared quizzically into her eyes.

"They just came to me and asked if they should do a toast. I said they could if they wanted to. They wanted to know what they should say. I just said to say how they felt. That's all," Amanda said. "The rest was all them and in case you're wondering, I had no idea what they were going to say. I just signaled Jamie to let him know it was his turn."

They both looked at each other. "MOTHER!" "DOTTY!"

Then they both shook their heads and laughed.

Out of sight, Dotty stood next to Curt, her arms folded over her chest, a satisfied grin playing about her lips. Her eyes were not dry either as she watched Lee kneel, take Amanda's hand and lead her out onto the dance floor. "That young man really is an 11 and he truly does love my daughter," she said as she wiped at her tears.

Curt, eyes shining, took her hand and brought it to his lips, before he said, "That he does." Then they too began to dance.


End file.
